North hogs housing funds

The head of an Aboriginal housing group has taken aim at the State Government for pouring vast sums of money into the Pilbara and Kimberley while ignoring the Goldfields.

Goldfields Indigenous Housing Organisation chief executive Julia Shadlow-Bath said the unfair distribution of funds was an ongoing issue and her sentiments have been echoed by shadow minister for Aboriginal affairs Kyran O’Donnell.

Their criticism comes in the wake of a State Government announcement last week extolling the virtues of an initiative to reinforce a $200 million North-West Aboriginal Housing Fund by establishing a panel of local builders in the Kimberley and Pilbara.

The panel serves to boost attraction, retention and development of Aboriginal apprentices in building and maintenance contracts in the north of the State by complementing the wider funding effort to aid Aboriginal people transition into home ownership.

There is nothing like a $200 million fund for Aboriginal housing in the Goldfields.

Ms Shadlow-Bath said while the fund is good news for the communities reaping the benefits, it is an all-too-familiar story of the Goldfields being left scrabbling for the scraps.

“The money never comes this way,” she said. “The money has run out but regardless, the focus has always been on north Australian remote communities and we get what’s left over.

“We’re not the Pilbara, we are not the Kimberley and whether that’s because of the geography or whether everyone needs more than us, our issues are still the same.

“We are not broken as a region but we are not stellar. We don’t have camels on the beach, we have a Super Pit so we’re not sexy or particularly ugly.

“We had the gold lobby which was very strong but there are no votes in housing and it’s not until housing becomes a problem that it becomes an issue and something that’s discussed.”

Mr O’Donnell has applauded State Government initiatives in the North West but feels more money should be filtered this way.

He accused the State Government of throwing hundreds of millions of dollars at the Pilbara and Kimberley regions to ensure those seats became Labor strongholds.

“We are experiencing similar issues to the Pilbara and Kimberley, especially in the remote communities, and all communities should be included in these initiatives,” he said.

“The people of the Goldfields are sick of being treated as second- class citizens. They will not forget and I will be sure to continue reminding them about the State Government’s neglect.”